Revista de Educación,

Motricidad e Investigación

VOL. 19 (2022)

ISSN 2341-1473 pp. 45-59

https://doi.org/10.33776/remo.vi19.7108

PERSPECTIVA DE GÉNERO EN EL TURISMO

DEPORTIVO DE NATURALEZA

GENDER PERSPECTIVE IN NATURE SPORT TOURISM

Jorge Rojo-Ramos

Social Impact and Innovation in Health (InHEALTH) Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte,

Universidad de Extremadura, Cáceres, España.

Carmen Galán-Arroyo

Health, Economy, Motricity and Education (HEME) Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte,

Universidad de Extremadura, Cáceres, España.

Fernando Manzano-Redondo

Promoting a Healthy Society Research Group (PHeSO), Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte,

Universidad de Extremadura, Cáceres, España.

María José González-Becerra

BioẼrgon Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte, Universidad de Extremadura,

Cáceres, España.

Santiago Gomez-Paniagua

BioẼrgon Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte, Universidad de Extremadura,

Cáceres, España.

José Carmelo Adsuar

Promoting a Healthy Society Research Group (PHeSO), Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte,

Universidad de Extremadura, Cáceres, España.

https://doi.org/10.33776/remo.vi19.7108

[ 46 ]

Resumen

Dada la relevancia que está tomando el turismo de na-

turaleza como principal alternativa de ocio, siguiendo

los principios de sostenibilidad, minimizando el impacto

ambiental, la cultura local, y contribuyendo a la genera-

ción de ingresos y empleo; estudios anteriores han tra-

tado de analizar la demanda considerando a los turistas

como un grupo homogéneo. El desarrollo del turismo

requiere incorporar el enfoque de género para conocer

su impacto diferenciado en materia de sostenibilidad lo

que le permitirá implementar las acciones y actividades

turísticas indicadas, eﬁ caces y efectivas. Por consiguien-

te, este estudio pretende analizar el perﬁ l sociodemo-

gráﬁ co del turista de naturaleza en España segmentán-

dolo desde una perspectiva de género, para ofrecer una

oferta ordenada que permita satisfacer la necesidad de

acercarse al medio natural y contribuir a la igualdad de

género. Para ello, se han analizado los datos obtenidos

de la Encuesta de Turismo de Residentes del Instituto

Nacional de Estadística de 2019, a partir de una mues-

tra de 3.768 personas, seleccionando aquellos viajeros

cuyo motivo de viaje principal fuera turismo de naturale-

za. Los hallazgos muestran que hay un mayor porcentaje

de mujeres que de hombres, en su mayoría con un perﬁ l

más joven, que viven en pareja o con cónyuges, con un

mayor porcentaje sin carga familiar, con un mejor nivel

académico y mayores ingresos que los hombres, que

trabajan por cuenta ajena con empleos ﬁ jos. En conclu-

sión, es importante realizar un estudio detallado desde la

perspectiva de género para que el turismo de naturaleza

aborde realmente los retos de la sociedad y promueva

las herramientas necesarias para lograr la igualdad de

género a nivel global.

Palabras claves

Perspectiva de género; turismo de naturaleza; turismo

sostenible; perﬁ l del turista.

Fecha de recepción: 27/03/2022

Abstract

Given the relevance that nature tourism is taking as the

main leisure alternative, following the principles of sus-

tainability, minimizing environmental impact, local cul-

ture, and contributing to the generation of income and

employment; previous studies have tried to analyze the

demand considering tourists as a homogeneous group.

Tourism development requires incorporating the gender

approach to understand its differentiated impact on sus-

tainability, which will enable it to implement appropriate,

efﬁ cient and effective tourism actions and activities. The-

refore, this study aims to analyze the sociodemographic

proﬁ le of the nature tourist in Spain, segmenting it from

a gender perspective, in order to provide an ordered

offer to satisfy the need to approach the natural envi-

ronment and contribute to gender equality. To this end,

data obtained from the 2019 National Statistics Institute’s

Resident Tourism Survey of the National Institute of Sta-

tistics have been analyzed, based on a sample of 3,768

people, selecting those travelers whose main reason for

travel was nature tourism. The ﬁ ndings show that there is

a higher percentage of women than men, mostly with a

younger proﬁ le, living as a couple or with spouses, with

a higher percentage with no family burden, with a be-

tter academic level and higher income than men, who

are employed with permanent jobs. In conclusion, it is

important to carry out a detailed study from a gender

perspective so that nature tourism really addresses the

challenges of society and promotes the necessary tools

to achieve gender equality at a global level.

Keywords

Gender perspective; nature tourism; sustainable tou-

rism; tourist proﬁ le.

Fecha de aceptación: 19/05/2022

PERSPECTIVA DE GÉNERO EN EL TURISMO

DEPORTIVO DE NATURALEZA

GENDER PERSPECTIVE IN NATURE SPORT

TOURISM

Jorge Rojo-Ramos

Social Impact and Innovation in Health (InHEALTH) Research

Group, Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte, Universidad de

Extremadura, Cáceres, España.

Carmen Galán-Arroyo

Health, Economy, Motricity and Education (HEME) Research

Group, Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte, Universidad de

Extremadura, Cáceres, España.

Fernando Manzano-Redondo

Promoting a Healthy Society Research Group (PHeSO), Facultad

de Ciencias del Deporte, Universidad de Extremadura, Cáceres,

España.

María José González-Becerra

BioẼrgon Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte, Uni-

versidad de Extremadura, Cáceres, España.

Santiago Gomez-Paniagua

BioẼrgon Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte, Uni-

versidad de Extremadura, Cáceres, España.

José Carmelo Adsuar

Promoting a Healthy Society Research Group (PHeSO), Facultad

de Ciencias del Deporte, Universidad de Extremadura, Cáceres,

España.

Contacto:

sgomezpa@alumnos.unex.es

https://doi.org/10.33776/remo.vi19.7108

[ 47 ]

Today, tourism is conceived as a sector in full expansion and of vital importance as a strategy for

the development of the economy at all levels, being a key sector in the world economy (Kim etal.,

2006; Roura y Morales, 2011; Sigala, 2020). In The Worldwatch Institute, Chafe (2005) distinguishes

eight similar categories of tourism that have nature and the environment as their references, such

as adventure tourism, ecotourism, geotourism, mass tourism, nature-based tourism, pro-poor tou-

rism, responsible tourism, and sustainable tourism. Thereby, there is a growing interest in ﬁ nding

a sustainable model from a social, economic, and environmental point of view, called Sustainable

Tourism (Blasco, 2005). The concept of sustainable tourism according to the Federation of National

and Natural Parks (Lalangui etal., 2017), Sustainable Tourism is constituted by “all forms of tourism

development, management, and activity that maintain environmental, social and economic integrity,

as well as the well-being of natural and cultural resources in perpetuity”.

Furthermore, they must be closely related to the Sustainable Development Goals (Sostenible, 1986)

set by the United Nations for Agenda 2030 (Abou-Shouk etal., 2021). These Goals bring us to the con-

cern of our article to know the gender perspective and the role of sustainability in nature tourism (Sos-

tenible, 1986). To a greater or lesser extent, the practice of activities in nature produces different levels

of impact on the natural environment in which they are carried out (Crosby, 1996; Inskeep, 1999). The-

se levels should be minimized to achieve a sustainable environmental impact. For this reason, it con-

siders that it vitally important to know the socio-demographic proﬁ le of nature tourists to adapt and

reduce their environmental impact (Różycki y Dryglas, 2014). In this way, Alarcón (2018) states that it is

necessary to place gender equality at the very core of tourism activities so that tourism can be develo-

ped sustainably and responsibly. The importance of this topic is demonstrated by studies such as the

review of Gallego-Martínez (2019), which indicates that to the best of his knowledge, there is limited

literature on this issue, and studies on tourism and gender in Spain are in an initial phase of academic

production; or the study by Yerkes et al. (2020) examining cross-country variation in gender differen-

ces in leisure quality and contributing to the understanding of gender differences between countries.

Initially, academics anticipated that increasing women’s economic contributions would result in greater

equity for women (Chang et al., 2020) but opposing evidence has emerged, and the topic of whether

women beneﬁ t from global labor market integration remains unanswered, since norms and customs

are based on deeply held beliefs that dictate the behavior and privileges of individuals in societies and

have an impact on all aspects of life (Smith et al., 2003). When accessing the tourism space, female vi-

sitors were found to be more sensitive to and vulnerable to speciﬁ c types of danger, such as physical,

social or economic risk (Qi et al., 2009); despite the fact that women’s tourist engagement is now on level

with men’s (Harris et al., 2007). Additionally, mountains and isolated national parks have long been por-

trayed as ecosystems to be ‘colonized’ and ‘tamed’ by men (Cronon, 1996) while socialization and self

-care activities still attributed to women (McNiel et al., 2012). However, Myers (2010) identiﬁ ed that the

perceived risks associated with adventure activities provided an opportunity for personal challenge that

led to a sense of accomplishment, pride and increased conﬁ dence among the female participants. The

women talked about making deliberate attempts to get over their concerns, grow in conﬁ dence in their

physical prowess, and feel more empowered overall. In this line, there are already studies that identify an

exponential growth in the demand of women to participate in outdoor activities, such as mountainee-

ring, even more than men (Vodden-McKay & Schell, 2010).In terms of recreation, is not evenly spread

1. Introduction

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[ 48 ]

throughout society, and socio-demographic factors inﬂ uence the prevalence and scope of this access

(Shores etal., 2007). Women’s leisure is regarded less than men’s in patriarchal society, and as a result,

women tend to prioritize others’ leisure over their own or believe they are not entitled to it (Hargreaves,

1989). Women are still underrepresented in recreational activities overall, despite an increase in their en-

gagement in outdoor leisure activities (Boniface, 2006). In this sense, socialization of women with regard

to outdoor recreational activities is constrained by structural limitations, such as cultural beliefs about

women’s “places,” which may give rise to gender-based prejudices or other barriers that limit the parti-

cipation of some women in these activities (McNiel etal., 2012). Conversely, women’s positioning about

nature and the outdoors has been particularly complex and contradictory. Women have always been

connected with the natural world, being women conﬁ ned to the indoor domain; rather than the cultural/

male domain (Moore, 2011), so new currents of thinking aimed to capitalize on aligning women and

nature, pointing out at the linkage between women’s oppression and environmental problems, and loo-

king for new ways to re-inhabit natural spaces (Lindsey, 2020). Because the societal backdrop considers

some activities to be more suited for men, women who excel as outdoor professionals are frequently

referred to as “superwomen,” implying that being a woman in the outdoors, particularly in a leadership

role, is unusual (Delay & Dyment, 2003). As a result, a reactionary feminist trajectory has emerged that

distances women from this discourse (Disch & Hawkesworth, 2018).

Thereby, the aim of the study is to analyze the sociodemographic proﬁ le of nature tourists in the

Spanish context, offering both public and private organizations, valuable information to develop

lines of action and proposals aimed at reducing the gender gap in the area.

Participants

The sample that we present in the study is the population that carries out nature tourism in Spain and

refers to 3768 people, distributed throughout the Spanish territory, especially in the communities

where there is a larger population. Regarding the sample inclusion criteria, the population included

in the study comprises people over 15 years of age, men, and women who are residents in the main

family dwellings throughout Spain.

Design

Tourist trips analyzed were those made by the population of residents with main family homes in

Spain; and the trips made by those over 15 years of age, residents with main family homes in Spain.

These criteria have been established in order to characterize the participation of women in sports

tourism, generating an initial approach to the gender perspective in this context, analyzing those

differences existing in the current Spanish society.

The data collection was obtained through the source of the National Institute of Statistics (INE) of the

year 2019 (Instituo Nacional de Estadística, 2019), which takes the necessary logical, physical, and

administrative measures to ensure that the protection of conﬁ dential data is effective, guaranteeing

the anonymity of the data collected from the survey. In the statistical analysis, we only included the

people whose Main Reason for the Trip variable was Nature Tourism.

2. Material and Methods

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Measures

As for the variables studied, it should be noted that there are different socio-demographic variables

which we will now detail: age, gender, nationality, marital status (Butler, 1995), cohabitation with a

partner, level of studies, relationship between economic activity, professional status in the job per-

formance, type of household, type of accommodation, and main means of transport. In compliance

with the Data Protection Act, the National Institute of Statistics takes all the logical, physical, and ad-

ministrative measures necessary to ensure that the data is treated conﬁ dentially.

Data Analysis

The statistical programme SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences), version 20.0 for Windows

10, was used for the analysis of the data collection of the microdata survey of the National Institute

of Statistics. The data are expressed in percentages, standard deviation and interquartile range, in

whose results no relevant differences were evidenced.

The non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test (McKnight & Najab, 2010) was performed to check whe-

ther there were statistically signiﬁ cant differences between men and women. Next, a contingency

table with Pearson’s chi-squared test (Greenwood & Nikulin, 1996) was performed to check whether

there were statistically signiﬁ cant differences between the variables studied, noting that the level of

signiﬁ cance for all statistical tests was set at p > .05. Finally, to check whether the variables met the

assumption of normality, the Kolmogorov Smirnov test was used (Lilliefors, 1967).

Table 1 shows the distribution of frequencies of the variables studied by gender. It should be noted

that there are statistically signiﬁ cant differences according to gender in the variable’s nationality,

relationship of economic activities, professional status, and type of household.

Table 1.

Gender differences according to age, nationality, and marital status

Total Men Women p

Age N N (%) N (%)

3768 1766 (46.9%) 2002 (53.1%) <.01

Nationality N (%) N (%) N (%)

Only Spanish 3634 (96.4%) 1695 (96%) 1939 (96.9%) .024

Only Foreign 86 (2.3%) 52 (2.9%) 34 (1.7%)

Spanish and Foreign 48 (1.3%) 19 (1.1%) 29 (1.4%)

Marital status N (%) N (%) N (%)

Single 1110 (29.5%) 535 (30%) 575 (28.7%) .101

Married 2217 (58.8%) 1030 (58.3%) 1187 (59.3%)

Widowed 111 (2.9%) 39 (2.2%) 72 (3.6%)

Separate 54 (1.4%) 26 (1.5%) 28 (1.4%)

Divorced 276 (7.3%) 136 (7.7%) 140 (7%)

3. Results

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In the nationality variable, we can observe how the highest percentage of nature tourists in Spain are of Spanish nationality (96.4%),

consistent with the data on the origin of nature tourism in the Sectoral Plan for Nature and Biodiversity Tourism 2014-2020 (approved

by RD 416/2014) which indicates that the number of national tourists (86%) is higher than that observed for foreign tourists (14%).

Also, there is a difference in nationality according to gender (p = .024). In foreign nationality, 52 men had exclusively foreign nationali-

ty; however, only 34 women had this foreign nationality. Regarding the variable marital status, we ﬁ nd a higher percentage of married

people (58.8%), followed by 29.5% in single people.

Table 2.

Gender differences according to cohabitation, level of studies and economic activity

Total Men Women p

Cohabitation with a partner N (%) N (%) N (%)

Cohabitation with their spouse 2175 (57.7%) 1008 (57.1) 1167 (58.3%) .261

Cohabitation with a common-law

partner

379 (10.1%) 168 (9.5%) 211 (10.5%)

Not cohabitation together as a

couple

1214 (32.2%) 590 (33.4%) 624 (31.2%)

Level of studies N (%) N (%) N (%)

Primary education or less 96 (2.6%) 45 (2.6%) 51 (2.6%) .185

Secondary education, ﬁ rst stage 576 (15.4%) 288(16.4%) 288 (14.4%)

Secondary education, second stage 719 (19.2%) 347 (19.8%) 372 (18.6%)

Post - secondary education 2359 (62.9%) 1071 (61.2%) 1288 (64.4%)

Relationship between economic

activity

N (%) N (%) N (%)

Employed 2629 (70.1%) 1273 (72.7%) 1356 (67.8%) <.001

Unemployed 225 (6%) 77 (4.4%) 148 (7.4%)

Retired 532 (14.2%) 314 (17.9%) 218 (10.9%)

Other inactive 364 (9.7%) 87 (5%) 277(13.9%)

Concerning as cohabitation with a partner is concerned, most of the participants cohabitation with their spouse (57.7%). A difference

can be observed (p= .261) in cohabitation with a common-law partner according to gender, where 168 men and 211 women are

observed. This is an activity in which a high level of education predominates, as shown below. High school level (62.9%) is the majo-

rity, showing a large signiﬁ cant difference according to the gender analysed. Signiﬁ cant differences according to gender were also

obtained in the categories of retired people and the rest of the inactive (p < .01). However, employed people predominate (70.1%),

followed by retirees (14.2%).

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[ 51 ]

Table 3.

Gender differences according to professional status, household, and secondary housing availability

Total Men Women p

Professional status in the job performed N (%) N (%) N (%)

Employer, professional or self-employed per-

son who employs others

151 (5.7%) 101 (7.9%) 50 (3.7%) <.001

Employer, professional or self-employed per-

son who does not employ others

196 (7.5%) 124 (9.7%) 72 (5.3%)

Employee or employee with a permanent

contract

1973 (75%) 926 (72.7%) 1047 (77.2)

Employee or employee with a temporary

contract

309 (11.8%) 122 (9.6%) 187 (13.8%)

Type of household N (%) N (%) N (%)

Single household 574 (15.2%) 305 (17.3%) 269 (13.4%) <.001

Single parent cohabitation with a child 283 (7.5%) 105 (5.9%) 178 (8.9%)

Couple without children cohabitation at

home

993 (26.4%) 427 (24.2%) 566 (28.3%)

Couple with children cohabitation at home 1725 (45.8%) 855 (44.8%) 870 (43.5%)

Other household 193 (5.1%) 74 (4.2%) 119 (5.9%)

Secondary housing availability N (%) N (%) N (%)

Yes 1328 (35.2%) 638 (36.1%) 690 (34.5%) .287

No 2440 (64.8%) 1128 (63.9%) 1312 (65.5%)

According to the professional status in the job performed, the main proﬁ le was of a salaried employee or employee with an indeﬁ nite

contract (75%). In this variable, a signiﬁ cant difference was obtained (p < .01), according to gender, speciﬁ cally in the proﬁ le of Em-

ployer, professional or self-employed person who employs others. The sample selected the household in which couples with children

cohabitated at home (45.8%) as the most popular type of household, followed by the household of couples without children who

cohabitated in the same household (26.4%). Again, signiﬁ cant differences (p < .01) were found according to gender in this variable.

However, no signiﬁ cant differences were found for the variable of availability of secondary housing.

Table 4.

Gender differences according to accommodation and transport

Total Men Women p

Type of accommodation N (%) N (%) N (%)

Hotel or apartment hotel 753 (20%) 356 (20.2%) 397 (19.8%) .142

Hostel 114 (3%) 59 (3.3%) 55 (2.7%)

Complete housing for rent 382 (10.1%) 178 (10.1%) 204 (10.2%)

Room for rent in a private home 6 (0.2%) 1 (0.1%) 5 (0.2%)

Rural tourism accommodation 556 (14.8%) 269 (15.2%) 287 (14.3%)

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Shelter 70 (1.9%) 38 (2.2%) 32 (1.6%)

Camps 362 (9.6%) 155 (8.8%) 207 (10.3%)

Cruise 11 (0.3%) 7 (0.4%) 4 (0.2%)

Other market accommodations 19 (0.5%) 8 (0.5%) 11 (0.5%)

Home ownership 811 (21.5%) 379 (21.5%) 432 (21.6%)

Family, Friend or company housing 524 (13.9%) 236 (13.4%) 288 (14.4%)

Shared use housing 6 (0.2%) 0 (0%) 6 (0.3%)

Swapped homes 7 (0.2%) 2 (0.1%) 5 (0.2%)

Other non-market accommodation 147 (3.9%) 78 (4.4%) 69 (3.4%)

Main means of transport N (%) N (%) N (%)

Air transport 303 (8%) 127 (7.2%) 176 (8.8%) .464

Cruise 6 (0.2%) 3 (0.2%) 3 (0.1%)

Ferry 26 (0.7%) 11 (0.6%) 15 (0.7%)

Own, leased or rented boat 1 (0.0%) 0 (0%) 1 (0%)

Car or other private cars owned or leased 3204 (85%) 1526 (86.4%) 1678 (83.8%)

Car or other private cars rented without a

driver from rental companies

43 (1.1%) 18 (1%) 25 (1.2%)

Taxis or carpooling with payment to the

driver

5 (0.1%) 2 (0.1%) 3 (0.1%)

Car or carpooling with payment to the

driver

2 (0.1%) 0 (0%) 2 (0.1%)

Bus 132 (3.5%) 59 (3.3%) 73 (3.6%)

Train 32 (0.8%) 13 (0.7%) 19 (0.9%)

Non-motorized land transport 5 (0.1%) 4 (0.2%) 1 (0%)

Other means of transport 9 (0.2%) 3 (0.2%) 6 (0.3%)

The type of accommodation is another important factor in the characterization, which has a signiﬁ cant economic impact on the areas

of observation and surroundings. The type of accommodation chosen by our sample on their trips is predominantly homeownership

(21.5%), followed by hotels or apartment hotels (20%). This variable is an issue of relevance for the hotel sector, as it shows very diffe-

rent values in the category of shared use housing, in which no men selected this type of accommodation, and signiﬁ cant differences

were found according to gender (p < .01). The main means of transport used was the private car (85%), one of the least sustainable

of all, followed by air transport (8%).

This study has led to a several conclusions and contributions, such as the description of the proﬁ le

of the nature tourist from a gender perspective. Its purpose has been to facilitate the work of desig-

ning activities to achieve a more orderly offer, enhance our sustainable tourism, and to achieve the

satisfaction of all structures involved, adapting to the challenges of society.

4. Discusión

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[ 53 ]

With this study, new answers are provided to this theoretical framework, demanded in studies such

as the Gallego-Martinez (2019) or the Meng & Uysal (2008), who stated that it was important that fu-

ture researchers examine tourist behaviour further from gendered perspectives in nature-based tou-

rism settings. Concerning gender, it can highlight that there is a higher percentage of women than

men. However, to further deﬁ ne the proﬁ le we have considered other types of variables. As regards

the mean age variable of our sample was 49.19 years for men and 48.73 for women, in line with

some studies, such as Crespo (2019) who state that the proﬁ le of the nature tourist is over 45 years

old, or Beedie & Hudson (2003) which indicate that most of these tourists are over 30 years old.

It should be noted that the socio-economic variable of marital status has a positive effect on partici-

pation in sustainable tourism (KC & Thapa Parajuli, 2014). In line with Mogollón (2008), who indicates

that it is clear that the type of tourism products demanded will depend on the group to which is

owned, and it is increasingly observed, that adventure tourism is more practiced by young couples

without children or singles, deﬁ ning adventure tourism as any journey involving at least two of the

three elements listed below: contact with culture, the outdoors, or a physical activity (Adventure

Travel Trade Association etal., 2011). However, establishing a typology of tourism products typically

in demand according to their life cycle family is risky, although necessary on many occasions. Signiﬁ -

cant differences were found (p < .01), as 72 women were widowed and only 39 men were widowed.

Also Hanson’s study (2010), trying to show new approaches to sustainability, states that gender di-

fferences tend to remain stable when socio-demographic variables such as education, income and

marital status are held constant.

Likewise, an author such as Mill (1990) point out that an increase in the level of education is an ele-

ment that encourages tourism and physical activity. Regarding this area of education in general,

authors such as Anup & Parajuli (2014) recommend carrying out education and awareness program-

mes related to tourism and women’s gender empowerment. In this way, the study shows that house-

hold size is a variable that has a positive effect on participation in sustainable tourism.

In line with the Annual Report of the visitor proﬁ le of tourist ofﬁ ces (Campesino etal., 2018), where

hotels were the most demanded establishments. It is worth noting that, according to the Hall et al.

(2016) study, the most common green practices in hotels tend to be water conservation, energy

efﬁ ciency and waste reduction. It is estimated that after the variable of the main means of transport

used, the accommodation sector is the most polluting sector, contributing 21% of global tourism

greenhouse gas emissions (Scott etal., 2008). Furthermore, in this relationship with sustainability,

the type of accommodation is a major user of energy, land and water resources, contributing to the

production of water, food and other waste (Hall etal., 2016). The World Health Organization (WHO)

has recently pointed out that the air we breathe is polluted by emissions from motor vehicles, and

that exposure to these particles reduces the quality of life (Organization & others, 2016). This cha-

racteristic reﬂ ects the preferential travel habits of tourists and the scarcity of transport alternatives,

due to the rural nature of the areas where the activity takes place. For this reason, as indicated in the

study by Rojo-Ramos et al. (2021), it is of vital importance to understand consumer preferences, so

that appropriate services can be offered and the impact they may have on the ecosystem can be

mitigated. In this context, public administrations must offer ecological alternatives to the current

situation of nature tourism in Spain and the environment, generating infrastructures and facilitating

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[ 54 ]

the development of strategies for the development of tourism companies, such as economic alloca-

tions for environmentally friendly transport initiatives or including these locations in public transport

routes.

In this way, Cavagnaro et al.’s (2021) study with young travelers reveals that there are groups that

offer great opportunities for a sustainable tourism approach, but others require a different framing

of the tourism offer, and others seem to be interested only in hedonic experiences. Thereby, accor-

ding to Quintana (2017), the main future line of research should be to achieve a sustainable tourism

product that is compatible with the post-modern background scenario outlined by the Sustainable

Development Goals (Sostenible, 1986) most relevant to this issue: health and well-being, gender

equality, clean water and sanitation, affordable and clean energy, decent work and economic grow-

th, reduction of inequalities, sustainable cities and communities, responsible production and con-

sumption, and climate action. Accordingly, in her study of the relationship between gender and the

Sustainable Development Goals, authors Alarcón & Cole (2019), argues that if gender equality is

not effectively addressed in a meaningful and substantial way, tourism’s potential will be conside-

rably reduced. Indeed, the Global Report on Women in Tourism (Abou-Shouk etal., 2021) provides

a series of key factors that contribute to gender equality in the tourism sector, seeking to mitigate

inequality, harness the potential of tourism, and helping to achieve Sustainable Development Goal

5: “achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls”.

In summary, we can conclude that the socio-demographic proﬁ le of the nature tourist in Spain is

mainly female, in general with a younger proﬁ le, cohabitation as a couple or with their spouses,

coming from big cities, with a better academic level and income than men, and working with per-

manent jobs. These data lead us to look for sustainable tourism options that are generally oriented

towards women, promoting concrete actions that favor the implementation of gender equality, lin-

king the variables analysed with the gender perspective and the sustainability of tourism. Most of

the variables shown in the study found signiﬁ cant differences according to gender. The most nota-

ble differences were in foreign nationality, widowhood, level of post-secondary education, number

of retired people and the rest of the inactive people, the professional status in the job performed

and, ﬁ nally, in the variable of the couple without children cohabitation at home.

The results obtained are relevant for the design of a tidy offer, to ensure a sustainable product,

and to succeed in addressing the real challenges of today’s society (Bento et al., 2016; Mediavilla,

2013). For example, the issue of transportation must be addressed by public administrations since

most nature tourism companies cannot take effective measures on their own (Bento etal., 2016). By

analyzing the socio-demographic proﬁ le taking into account the gender perspective, the quality of

the demanded offer of nature tourists will increase, achieving greater satisfaction and boosting sus-

tainable tourism in Spain. Finally, sustainable tourism plays a key role in achieving the most related

Sustainable Development Goals, as well as gender equality and women’s empowerment in tourism.

All of the ﬁ ndings, recommendations, and action points provide the methods and tools necessary

to empower women in tourism and achieve gender equality worldwide. Private institutions should

participate in calls for research and investment in gender issues, as this is considered the most efﬁ -

5. Conclusión

https://doi.org/10.33776/remo.vi19.7108

[ 55 ]

cient way to propose and develop this type of actions in different areas that encompass the gender

perspective and sustainable tourism. In addition, these companies have ﬁ rst-hand knowledge of

the demands and difﬁ culties of the consumers of these activities, so their perceptions are of great

relevance to adapt any line of action. Similarly, public institutions have great potential to promote

equality in outdoor activities. The generation of physical activity programs in the natural environment

from an early age for women, the expansion of the offer of those activities most requested by female

tourists or the promotion of those companies that favor the inclusion of women in their activities are

examples of good practices in this sector.

This research shows a number of limitations that should be noted. The ﬁ rst limitation is that the total

sample size cannot be indicated as signiﬁ cant, as we have a small number of participants compared

to the actual number of tourists travelling in our country each year and practice nature activities, sin-

ce the Sectorial Plan for Nature and Biodiversity Tourism 2014-2020 (Real Decreto 416/2014, 2014)

estimates around 35 million annual overnight stays associated with nature tourism. This indicates

that the data presented here should be treated with caution. The second limitation of the study is the

impossibility of knowing the actual destinations or nature sites preferred by our tourists. If knowing

this information, it would increase the quality of the offers, favoring the full development of this type

of tourism.

Based on the results and ﬁ ndings obtained in the research, some lines of future research are pro-

posed. One of them is that we propose to the scientiﬁ c community the possibility of broadening

the object of study, taking foreign tourists as a sample. In this way, it will be possible to identify with

greater precision the proﬁ le and interests of those who engage in nature tourism, taking into account

the gender perspective. In this way, the study could be designed in other places, thus being able to

compare the differences in the socio-demographic proﬁ les of nature tourists in other countries, also

from a gender perspective.

To the participants and researchers who made this study possible.

The authors declare no conﬂ ict of interest.

This research received no external funding.

Abou-Shouk, M. A., Mannaa, M. T., & Elbaz, A. M. (2021). Women’s empowerment and tourism de-

velopment: A cross-country study. Tourism Management Perspectives, 37, 100782. https://doi.

org/10.1016/j.tmp.2020.100782.

Adventure Travel Trade Association, The George Washington University, & Vital Wave Consulting.

(2011). Adventure Tourism Development Index 2010 (p. 36). Available in: https://www.adventu-

reindex.travel/docs/atdi_2010_report.pdf

7. Conﬂ icts of Interest

8. Funding

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